Search

Agricultural input and output prices have become extremely volatile in recent years and the global meat industry faces sustainability challenges related to climate change, resource competition, environmental regulations, animal welfare concerns, consumer preferences and industry policies. Additionally, the economic situation of cattle fattening farms has been significantly impacted by two major shocks: the COVID-19 pandemic and the onset of the war in Ukraine. This has led to a growing demand for microsimulation tools that can analyse how these conditions affect the operations of agricultural farms and address various technological challenges at both the farm and sector levels. In this paper, we present a farm model to analyse the cattle farming sector for the pre-Alpine region, using Slovenia, a typical example of this region, as a case study. These farms are particularly important from both social and environmental sustainability perspectives, and it is crucial that economic sustainability follows suit. The results of the SiTFarm model show that, on average, farms in the cattle farming sector achieved modest results between 2018 and 2022, with an average gross margin of 9.57 €/h. However, the variability is significant, with a coefficient of variation 0.74. Only 25% of farms exceeded 17.15 €/h, while 25% did not surpass 4.46 €/h. At the sector level, the gross margin decreased by 12% in 2020 but increased by 99% in 2022 compared to the reference year 2018, highlighting the incredible price volatility over a short period. The model results also indicate greenhouse gas emissions ranging from 5.01 to 7.77 kg CO2 eq. per kg of daily body weight gain on the analysed farms. Nearly half of the farms have GHG emissions for cattle fattening exceeding 6.1 kg CO2 eq. per kg daily body weight gain, while about 10% of farms achieve a sustainability target of approximately 5 kg CO2 eq. per kg of daily body weight gain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a simulation model for determining the most suitable type of microbiogas plant for small local communities on Slovenian farms, focusing on the efficient processing of organic waste. This model uses various input parameters, including different types and quantities of slurry and corn silage. Four different scenarios were developed to represent potential plant sizes, each evaluated using key economic indicators: net present value, breakthrough price, and internal rate of return. A scenario sensitivity analysis was conducted to assess the effects of changes in investment costs, fluctuations in energy prices, and the addition of corn silage to the anaerobic digestion process. The results highlight significant differences in economic viability across the scenarios, with some demonstrating positive financial outcomes and shorter payback periods and others indicating potential financial risks and longer recovery times under certain conditions. The analysis suggests that smaller micro biogas plants may struggle to achieve profitability without optimizing input ratios or reducing costs, whereas larger plants show more favorable economic indicators, provided certain conditions are met. Furthermore, the economic efficiency improves when adding maize silage to the fermentor mixture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Besides visiting the main tourist attractions in Slovenia, many tourists want to spend their free time in the countryside as well, but the number of farming establishments in Slovenia diminished distinctly in the last years.

The question of gender equality is increasingly being raised today and is present at all levels of society. The topicality of the issue on farms is particularly evident, due to the particular inheritance processes on farms, the clear division of labour, and intergenerational cooperation that characterise the agricultural sector. In this research, a multi-criteria model (DEX-SOCIAL) was developed to understand the broader aspect of rural sociology and the issue of women's status on the farm. The paper discusses the status of women on a farm and assesses their social and economic situation. The methodology includes an online questionnaire in which women in the Eastern and Western Cohesion Regions participated, as well as other farm members and owners. Subsequently, the questions were transformed for the requirements of the assessment model, which assessed the life prospects of women on farms in both the Eastern and Western Cohesion Regions who were aged both over and under 40 years (criteria for "young successor"). The results of the study show that there is a clear difference in the qualitative assessment of women's socio-economic position in relation to the East–West cohesion region. The social position of women does not differ according to age structure. The conclusions of the study also present broader applications of the results in the field of rural development and rural sociology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Purpose: The purpose of this study is to describe the principles of the development of parallel system-dynamics and agent-based models of organic farming for the case of Slovenia. The advantage of agent-based modeling is demonstrated by including geospatial information as an agent attribute. The models were compared by the validation, confirming the appropriate level of similarity.

The content of this paper presents the research results of a three-year research project in which a multi-criteria evaluation model (according to the DEX methodology) was developed for the evaluation of three different food sectors (represented by a cattle breeding chain, a pig farming chain, and a milk production chain) with added value in Slovenia. Indicators for the assessment of the economically, socially, and environmentally sustainable development of food chains were taken into account. The data for the analysis, such as prices and costs of food, wage levels by sector, food miles and others, were obtained from various public services between 2020 and 2023. The final qualitative assessment of the food sectors was uniform ("average"), while the longest analysis of the results using the plus-minus-1 analysis method showed the reasons for such an assessment in individual sectors (such as the ratio between the price of agricultural products and the price of agricultural inputs is poor, the ratio between average gross salary in the individual food sector and gross salary in the agricultural sector is poor, etc.). In addition to the results already mentioned, recommendations or suggestions for building a sustainable food chain were made using the results of the modelling. The research results contributed to a better understanding of the importance of stable relationships between different groups of indicators and later showed their importance for improving the functioning of agri-food chains. The results of the research will help various stakeholders (such as the agricultural advisory service, decision-makers at the level of agricultural policy, researchers in further analyses, and especially the international professional public interested in various case studies from EU countries) to further analyse and plan for the organisation of the agricultural sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Purpose: The sugar beet is the main field crop used for sugar production in the temperate climatic zone. Since investment in sugar beet industry are long term and ireversible the decision support and economic analysis are required in order to maximise investment returns.

Purpose: Organic and integrated production of vegetables are the two most common production systems in Slovenia. The study analyzed two production systems with different cultures as alternatives with purpose to find the most appropriate variants.

Background: The sugar beet is the main field crop used for sugar production in the temperate climatic zone. The abolishment of the quota system will open new investment opportunities in countries that were forced to abandon sugar industry as the result of the reform in 2006. Present paper describes the modeling of sugar beet production and its processing into sugar for purpose of decision support.

This paper presents the system dynamics model of organic farming development in order to support decision making. The model seeks answers to strategic questions related to the level of organically utilized area, levels of production and crop selection in a long-term dynamic context. The model will be used for simulation of different policy scenarios for organic farming and their impact on economic and environmental parameters of organic production at an aggregate level. Using the model, several policy scenarios were performed.

The new role that agricultural advisory plays in innovation processes and the development of agriculture towards sustainability requires the improvement of its performance. The basic prerequisite for realizing the potential of agricultural advisory in the areas mentioned is a strongly developed education system that will enable the development of strong advisory capacities. This survey is based on three areas of the education system: organization of education, satisfaction with educators, and evaluation of education and the potential of individuals in the organization. The basic principles on which the education system is based are outdated and, therefore, inadequate for developing the performance that the new role of agricultural advisors in innovation processes requires. Multiple regression analysis results indicate that a greater evaluation of education and the potential of individuals in the organization implies greater involvement of agricultural advisors in the selection of topics that will be provided to them through education and more advanced performances of educators responsible for educating. One-factor analysis of variance (ANOVA) determined that there are no statistically significant differences, at the p < 0.05 level, in the level of perceived competence of advisors for sustainable agricultural practices depending on the frequency of attending education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Before making a decision to invest in fruit growing, an investor needs to have the basic information on which to base his decision. This information contains sufficient economic indicators to form the basis for the decision making. The decision should be based, first of all, on economic profitability of the investment. Cost-benefit analysis is a method which provides the decision maker with the information about a number of economic indicators regarding the desired investment, from its profitability and competitiveness to the return on investment period, etc. This paper deals with the cost-benefit analysis in the decision-making process concerning economic profitability of investing in agricultural production, namely the newly planted fruit. Cost-benefit analysis has many advantages compared with the other known methods. It has proved very useful in agricultural production since it makes it possible to estimate the profitability of investment in very specific conditions of agricultural production, taking into account numerous factors of its economic efficiency as well as the main effects that may be expected both by individual producers and the social community as a whole.

This paper examines the efficiency of tourist farms in Slovenia by adopting an approach using a framework of non-parametric programming—Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) and Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP), combining the two because the DEA analysis by itself does not take into account all attributes, especially qualitative ones. The beforementioned two methods rank the farm tourism units with respect to their efficiency. By using the DEA method, an input- and output-oriented BCC and CCR model were introduced to upgrade the criteria by including the additional non-numerical criteria of the AHP. The results of the models showed that there are possible improvements on all levels of efficiency, as well as on the criteria of the additional offer of tourist farms, which were analyzed in the AHP model with additional criteria. According to the estimated efficiency, the ranking of tourist farms differed according to the two methods. Within the group of farms assessed as efficient by DEA, the AHP model allowed a more accurate ranking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The COVID-19 epidemic has shown that efficient prediction models are required, and the well-known SI, SIR, and SEIR models are not always capable of capturing the real dynamics. Modified models with novel structures could help identify unknown mechanisms of COVID-19 spread. Objective: Our objective is to provide additional insights into the COVID-19 spread mechanisms based on different models' parameterization which was performed using evolutionary algorithms and the first-wave data. Methods: Data from the Our World in Data COVID-19 database was analysed, and several models—SI, SIR, SEIR, SEIUR, and Bass diffusion—and their variations were considered for the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. The models' parameters were tuned with differential evolution optimization method L-SHADE to find the best fit. The algorithm for the automatic identification of the first wave was developed, and the differential evolution was applied to model parameterization. The reproduction rates (R0) for the first wave were calculated for 61 countries based on the best fits. Results: The performed experiments showed that the Bass diffusion model-based modification could be superior compared to SI, SIR, SEIR and SEIUR due to the component responsible for spread from an external factor, which is not directly dependent on contact with infected individuals. The developed modified models containing this component were shown to perform better when fitting to the first-wave cumulative infections curve. In particular, the modified SEIR model was better fitted to the real-world data than the classical SEIR in 43 cases out of 61, based on Mann–Whitney U tests; the Bass diffusion model was better than SI for 57 countries. This showed the limitation of the classical models and indicated ways to improve them. Conclusions: By using the modified models, the mechanism of infection spread, which is not directly dependent on contacts, was identified, which significantly influences the dynamics of the spread of COVID-19. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a model for finding the most suitable locations for setting up micro-biogas plants (<50 kW), which represent an efficient way of processing organic waste in small local communities. The input parameters of the model, which was made with GIS tools, were the number of farms and heads of large livestock with their locations, the number of food establishments and their collected food waste and waste fat. We tested the case study model in the Gorenjska region in Slovenia. The result of processing the input data in the model are four locations in three municipalities Naklo 1, Naklo 2, Kranj and Cerklje. We evaluated the locations with economic indicators net present value (NPV), internal rate of return (IRR) and discounted payback period (DPP). With sensitivity analysis, we investigated the impact of increasing investment costs, decreasing energy prices and different scenarios with adding corn silage to the anaerobic process. Location Naklo 1 has NPV 31,410.26 €, IRR 10.53% and DPP 22 years, Naklo 2 has NPV −58,808.91 € and DPP of more than 25 years, location Kranj has NPV 140,313.00 €, IRR 13.07% and DPP 16 years, location Cerklje has NPV −43,026.82 € and DPP of more than 25 years. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this research was to determine a sustainable economic model of a milk farm in Bosnia and Herzegovina through the possibility of reorientation of raw milk production into cheese on-farm processing. All investment costs, annual production costs, production quantities, prices and annual income were collected through an unstructured questionnaire. The case study farm, originally engaged in milk production, reoriented itself to processing milk into several products. A cost–benefit analysis was applied for the 14-year project lifetime, as well as the Black–Scholes and binomial models of real options evaluation for shifting to cheese production in the fourth year of the project. The milk production farm is economically inefficient, and the investment project is unacceptable, resulting in negative net present value under assumed typical production parameters, and the payback period is longer than the project lifetime. The cheese production option value is positive according to the Black–Scholes and binominal models. Both real options models confirmed that processing milk into cheese is sustainable long-term and economically. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wine, viticulture, and winemaking are an important cornerstone of economic development, culture, and tourism. Especially in wine-growing parts of the world where symbols related to wine are used even as local or national symbols. Viticulture and its complementary branches are differently developed in different parts of the world - the predisposition of further development, however, is also influenced importantly by positions of different identification referential groups which they have towards the use of wine and further development of the profession. Based on the research of standpoints of the mayors in the Republic of Slovenia, which could be presented as "wine-growing country" with regards to the extent of the vine, we can assert that mayors with their relationship towards wine and their operations influence the use of local wine for the tourist promotion of destination importantly. According to that, we figure out that mayors play an important role in the development of "public policy" in the local environment. In the forming of the positions towards the use of wine for the promotion, the direct experiences are important, as well as the environment where the mayors come from and all identification elements in the sense of cultural heritage, tradition, and development of the branch. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to assess the economic aspects of bedding materials for sport/recreational horses. Four materials are tested: sawdust in bulk, wood shavings, squared harvest straw, and slice-dusted straw. The process of collecting data for feasibility analysis is structured into two different trials. In Trial 1, daily observations are collected and measured to obtain data about the technical and cleaning characteristics of the four different bedding materials, and in Trial 2, the durability of the bedding materials is tested. From an economic (cost) standpoint, the most suitable bedding materials are squared harvest straw and slice-dusted straw. Unfavourable economic results are found for wood shavings and sawdust in bulk. However, the durability analysis shows wood shavings and slice-dusted straw to be the better options. Thus, the results indicate that some bedding types are better for durability reasons and others are better for economic reasons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cattle breeding is a very important part of agricultural production in Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H), and milk production has a vital place in cattle breeding production. From an economic point of view, milk production is interesting as it is a daily production which presupposes faster marketing, which accelerates capital movement in agriculture, which in turn enhances liquidity. This research uses analyses of the existing state in milk production. The collected data are processed and cost calculation has been designed which enables the analysis of economic indicators of 4 dairy farm production models in B&H. Based on the collected data on features and values of dairy farm production models in B&H an analysis of expert evaluation was conducted as input data for DEXi method. The aim of this paper is to ascertain the basic indicators of business success of 4 dairy farm production models in B&H. Production-ecological, economic and socio-political features of the mentioned dairy farm models were analyzed. Based on the used criteria a rate of dairy farm production models using DEXi method was conducted. The results of the research in this paper using DEXi method show that the best model for dairy farm is model number four, which includes 45 milk cows. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study presents an application of artificial neural network and regression modeling techniques for forecasting grassland dry matter yield. Using data from a field plot experiment on semi-natural grassland in Maribor (Slovenia), the multiple regression and artificial neural network methodologies were employed to explain the patterns of dry matter yield during a 6-year period. On the basis of the two proposed approaches forecasts were conducted for the independent, validation year (6). The results in terms of Theil inequality coefficient, mean absolute error, and correlation coefficient show a better forecasting performance for the artificial neural network (likely due to the non-linear relationships prevailing among regressors and regressand) while relationships between observables can be better explained by regression modeling results. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper presents the application possibility of "Effect size" and Cohen's-d index in the case of introduction of new milk products on the market. The field and online survey were used to establish the potential interest of final consumers for new functional food product of dairy company in Slovenia - milk with phytosterols additives. Two techniques possibilities of Cohen-d index were calculated; manual and using the Cohen's-d calculator. Further, the application is focused on two main questions in survey regarding observed problem: 1) Would you buy milk with phytosterols additives, which scientifically proven lowers concentration of cholesterol in blood? 2) Would you pay for it at a higher price? The sample includes 419 surveys, 150 surveys were conducted on field (control group) and 269 surveys were provided online (experimental group). The Cohen's-d index (d) results show by using manual and Cohen's-d calculator for both groups "small" effect (d=0.35, i.e. d=0.34 ), and "zero or near zero" effect (d=0.15, i.e.= 0.15) when deciding to buy new milk product. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents the system for the assessment of energy crops for biogas production. The system is based on simulation modelling and multi criteria decision analysis. The deterministic simulation system consists of deterministic production simulation models that enable different types of costs calculations for the production of energy crops, electrical and heat energy in biogas production. Simulation model results were further evaluated using a qualitative multi-attribute modelling methodology (supported by the software tool DEX-i) and quantitative analytical hierarchical process - AHP (supported by the software tool Expert Choice 2000TM). The analysis showed that by using current model the most relevant alternative used for energy crop for biogas production is maize. The maize results in the best multicriteria evaluation EC = 0.248 and DEX-i evaluation = appropriate. The best alternative for maize is sorghum with multicriteria evaluation of EC = 0.201 and DEX-i evaluation = less appropriate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Društvena Istraživanja is the property of Institute of Social Sciences Ivo Pilar and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The nutritional, technological and processing characteristics of spelt wheat make it suitable for organic farming. Furthermore, spelt wheat can be directly processed into different kinds of food products on the farm itself, and represents additional business and market opportunities for organic farmers. In this paper we examine different spelt processing alternatives on a chosen organic farm in northeastern Slovenia. Simulation modeling, cost-benefit analysis and multi-criteria decision analysis were applied in order to find the most suitable spelt processing solution for the analyzed farm. The presented methodological framework upgrades the standard financial cost-benefit analysis with a quantitative utility function and a qualitative DEX-i modeling approach. The calculation of utility function (u) and DEX-i evaluation produced the following spelt processing project rankings: spelt husking (u = 2,67) spelt cookies (u = 2,18), spelt flour (u = 1,65) and spelt bread (u = 1,63). The proposed methodology enables multi-criteria spelt processing project ranking; however, further studies are suggested for the development of multi-criteria decision analysis-based methods for this topic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, a new multi-criteria model for the evaluation of traditional and indigenous horse breeds, the HORQUAL model, was developed by applying the DEX (Decision Expert) method. The idea for this study culminated from brainstorming among researchers who had the importance of conserving traditional and indigenous horse breeds in Slovenia and their universal uses (recreative and sport) in mind. The conservation of native domestic animal breeds is one of the important indicators of sustainable agricultural development in particular countries. Here, the assessment process considered the horse breeds in terms of lifestyle, expectations, requirements and experiences. The development process was based on the multi-criteria decision analysis approach, and it was applied to seven traditional and indigenous Slovenian horse breeds. The horse breeds were classified into four groups of breed ratings according to the chosen criteria. The horse breeds were categorised as follows: "does not correspond to the criteria", "less correspondence with the criteria", "corresponds to the criteria" and "completely corresponds to the criteria". The results of the HORQUAL model clearly show that it is easier and more effective to choose the most suitable breeds for specific purposes (i.e., recreative/sport horses with the potential for breeding along with acceptable costs, favourable temperament and suitable price) as they can easily be analysed or compared with each other, according to the criteria chosen in this paper. The rating by group takes the criteria for the multi-attribute evaluation that were identified by an expert group into account and balances between the assessment of recreational and sports needs for riders and the life expectancy for breeders. Additionally, incorporating the Plus-minus-1 analysis proved to be a useful support tool to analyse the assessments and to further improve horse breeding plans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the importance of wine characteristics when choosing wine, such as the shape and colour of the bottle, type of wine cork, information on the wine label, price and ethnocentrism. Three research questions were proposed in this paper. A quantitative online survey in the form of 458 participants was carried out in Slovenia. Participants were asked questions relating to their wine consumption behaviour. The results of this study show the Spearman's correlation coefficient between ethnocentrism and country-of-origin importance. These findings benefit winemakers who want to improve their wine sales and learn what characteristics of the wine label are significant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Agro-pastoral systems in southern European regions have been subjected to various disturbances in the past few decades. Still, a certain amount of resilience allowed to withstand its sharp decline. The Serra da Estrela cheese production, the most representative agro-pastoral system of the Portuguese Centro Region, is a demonstrative case study. The main objective of this research is to understand the trajectory of this system up to present, its adaptation to internal and external changes and evolution trends. We used the concepts of resilience and socio–ecological system as framework in a qualitative study. Participatory methods were applied using the perspectives of local actors, in order to identify and analyze the key factors. The main drivers are socio-demographic (ageing, depopulation, social perception of the profession), economic (free market, industrialization), political (lack of adequate of national and European policies) and environmental (climate change, forest fires). Our results are in line with other European cases. To cope with these trends, the system is irreversibly transforming, moving into a new trajectory characterized by different systemic architecture. In face of the ongoing changes, the interactions between the social and the ecological subsystems are blurring, whereas local communities and traditions are being excluded. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the quality of the municipal waste sorting process in seven waste management centers in Slovenia was assessed using the qualitative multicriteria analysis (MCA) method DEX (Decision EXpert) implemented in DEXi software, which is based on multicriteria decomposition of the problem and utility functions in the form of "if–then" decision rules. The study was based on eight types of secondary raw materials. The quality of the secondary raw materials, the regularity of the delivery of secondary raw materials to recycling units based on the sorting efficiency, and the loading weight of the individual baled fractions in the transport of secondary raw materials for recycling were the main parameters used in the model. The final assessment shows "good" waste management service in centers A and D. Centers B, C, and F were rated "average". The "bad" rating was assigned to centers E and G. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores ethno-villages in Bosnia and Herzegovina as an important element of rural and cultural tourism. The attractiveness of natural and cultural heritage is very important for sustainable rural tourism development. In order to improve the process of decision making to enable the sustainable development of ethno-villages, a multi-criteria assessment model has been developed. The methodology is based on qualitative modeling using a multi-criteria analysis via the DEXi software. The model is based on hierarchical relations consisting of three main criteria that are the basis of sustainable tourism development: economic, social, and environmental criteria. The ultimate goal of the model in this study was to evaluate ethno-villages, namely six ethno-villages in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The results of the study show how ethno-villages contribute to sustainable development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper present a multi-criteria decision DEXi model for assessment of less favoured areas (LFAs). The tool enables easier assessment of farming in different areas of Slovene LFAs with respect to criteria of sustainability. Analysis of LFAs and final integration of the assessment of LFAs depend upon various criteria. In this paper we analyze individual LFAs and farming systems in these areas at the state level with respect to criteria of sustainability and farming potential. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Structural changes in farming present serious challenges on all levels from state level to the level of an individual farm. Rearrangement of a farm is one of these challenges. There are many factors influencing the decision for reorientation. In this contribution, a model for assessing potential of a farm for its transformation to a horticultural one is presented. The model takes in account criteria such as: natural resources, demographic, economic and social factors. Criteria selection, their structure and importance of their interrelations in the model are based on statistical data about farms, data gathered by survey research and expert group opinion. The model was developed with the DEX methodology, implemented by the program DEXi, and was critically evaluated on chosen set of farms. The added value of the approach is a transparent assessment picture of the potential of a farm as a vital support for making decision about its rearrangement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The attention of this paper is drawn to analyze the economic potential of involvement of farmers into the small-medium sized value-based food chain (VBFC). The survey represents a solid data basis from which econometric modelling approach was further developed. Empirical results reveal the positive economic viability on a general level; this means more stable purchase price of raw milk for dairy farms, which are the part of value-based food chain. Results point at inelastic demand for milk and milk related products. Furthermore, there are some accompanying and underlying indirect social benefits, such as production of high-quality food products, more stable and constant demand for raw milk, steady payments and better social situation. The last one is especially important for the farms operating in less-favored mountain areas where the survey was actually conducted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined the multi-criteria assessment of four dairy products: "Pomursko mlejko" (Pomurje milk), "Lejko mleko" (light milk), "Fyto mleko" (Fyto milk) and "Posneto mleko v prahu" (dried milk). The research was executed by using a multi-criteria methodology, DEX, which was complemented by an econometric analysis for light milk to estimate the trends in production and consumption before analyzed dairy products were implemented on the market. DEXi computer program results indicated that all analyzed milk products were 'above average'. The econometric model was applied to examine changes in the demand for low-fat milk (light milk). Empirical results showed significant consumer response to the increase in the prices of low-fat milk demonstrating income elasticity (1,15 unit). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]